SIMPLICITY AND SUSTAINABILITY IN SCANDINAVIAN DESIGN

The minimalistic style of Scandinavia is becoming more renowned worldwide. Originating from the aesthetic of their famous architecture, Scandinavian minimalism can also be found in their jewellery. An environmentally friendly aspect can also be detected, where inspiration from both nature and man forms perfect harmony.

26 Norwegian designers were brought together for the Milan 2016 Design Week’sStructure Exhibition. The Scandinavian aesthetic shone through particularly for Andreas Engesvik’s bronze shapes installation, based off his findings from Oslo’s Vigeland Park sculpture garden. Likewise, Lar Beller Fjetland’s cutlery sets fuses industrial aesthetics with the shapes of the Monstera plant leaf. Nature is at the core of both these, much like the ethos of Scandinavian design.

Norwegian designer Bjørg Nordli-Mathisen founded BJØRG JEWELLERY in 2004 with jewellery that depicts Scandinavian chic through its shape. The “Hall of Mirrors” collection translates the flat, smooth surface of mirrors into jewellery that sits so closely to the skin, as if a part of it. As mentioned by the brand;

“BJØRG has maintained a strong appreciation and respect for nature. Always aiming to balance the raw and the refined, there is a certain darkish, raw and organic feeling to all [of their] work, reflecting [their] Nordic soul.”

Potentially one of the first to bring the body chain to the fashion scene, Cornelia Webb thinks about the body first when she designs. Based in Stockholm, the eponymous label, Cornelia Webb creates clean jewellery with an industrial aesthetic. The Avant Garde collection especially looks like Scandinavian architecture for the body.

Taking much care in fit and comfort, Hong Kong based, Swede designer Malin Ohlsson creates ergonomical rings in her collection; Anatomy. Following the shape of the body, ” The rings have indents on the outside so you can fit in the neighbouring fingers”. Malin’s work is conceptual and considered object art for the body. This collection upholds the Scandinavian qualities of minimalist design, and evokes a sense of calmness and zen.

The Danish jewellery brand Kinraden, is another example of Scandinavian minimalism. At Kinraden, nature and environmentalism is highlighted. The company was ”born from the idea that modern, exclusive jewellery can be based recycled and sustainable materials” (Kinraden, 2016). By using sustainable materials, they manage to portray the Scandinavian aesthetic without costing nature. Much like the ethos of Scandinavian design, where sustainability and simplicity is key, Kinraden’s jewellery is effortless in style, so that

“its beauty will last – in your hands, your daughter’s, and within the world we all live in” (Kinraden, 2016)

Journalism and Design is how Sonia interprets and communicates with the world. Graduating from Manchester School of Art with bachelors in Fashion Design, she uses her accumulated knowledge of arts and design, and honed sense of style to inform her editorial work. She is obsessed with vivid pattern and colour, is constantly intrigued with the stories artists weave behind their work, and anything minimal with a sense of quirkiness.